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Experts in a Dying Field: The funny and moving novel about friendship, secrets, and the alchemy of music
'A wonderfully evocative novel from a major storytelling talent.’ JOSEPH O'CONNOR
‘Beautiful, big-hearted, silly and profound' SÉAMAS O'REILLY
‘Rich, funny, moving and alive. The Commitments for a generation who grew up burning their own CDs off dodgy LimeWire MP3s.' RÓISÍN LANIGAN
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The Heathens thought of themselves as 'the 1000th best band of all time'. Then their tour van crashed, and one of their members died.
Twenty years later, weird things are happening in Dublin, bringing the surviving members of the band together in ways none of them could have anticipated and lifting the lid on mysteries from their shared past.
Experts in a Dying Field is a gloriously sharp, witty and surprising novel about friendship, secrets, the strange workings of grief and guilt, and the joyful alchemy of music, from a writer with a unique ability to access humour and deep emotion.
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'Hums with life, told with the rigour and brilliance of one of Ireland’s finest minds. As profound as it is hilarious, Freyne’s voice is clever, tender, and original. Read it once, then read it again. Then go to the pub.’ ELAINE FEENEY
‘A paean to friendship, forgiveness and the power of music, told with the blend of empathy and wit that is Freyne's trademark. I loved this book’ LOUISE KENNEDY
'Kaleidoscopic ... Clever, warm and moving, it’s a remarkable book, thrumming with music and with love.' DOIREANN NÍ GHRÍOFA
---
Praise for Patrick Freyne
'Patrick Freyne is a comic genius' MARIAN KEYES
'A writer of rare humour, depth, and humanity' MARK O'CONNELL
'No one makes me laugh like Patrick Freyne' PAUL HOWARD
'A brilliant writer' BLINDBOY BOATCLUB
'Patrick Freyne has a distinct and enviable gift for story-telling' SINÉAD GLEESON
'One of the funniest writers in Ireland' IRISH EXAMINER
‘Beautiful, big-hearted, silly and profound' SÉAMAS O'REILLY
‘Rich, funny, moving and alive. The Commitments for a generation who grew up burning their own CDs off dodgy LimeWire MP3s.' RÓISÍN LANIGAN
---
The Heathens thought of themselves as 'the 1000th best band of all time'. Then their tour van crashed, and one of their members died.
Twenty years later, weird things are happening in Dublin, bringing the surviving members of the band together in ways none of them could have anticipated and lifting the lid on mysteries from their shared past.
Experts in a Dying Field is a gloriously sharp, witty and surprising novel about friendship, secrets, the strange workings of grief and guilt, and the joyful alchemy of music, from a writer with a unique ability to access humour and deep emotion.
---
'Hums with life, told with the rigour and brilliance of one of Ireland’s finest minds. As profound as it is hilarious, Freyne’s voice is clever, tender, and original. Read it once, then read it again. Then go to the pub.’ ELAINE FEENEY
‘A paean to friendship, forgiveness and the power of music, told with the blend of empathy and wit that is Freyne's trademark. I loved this book’ LOUISE KENNEDY
'Kaleidoscopic ... Clever, warm and moving, it’s a remarkable book, thrumming with music and with love.' DOIREANN NÍ GHRÍOFA
---
Praise for Patrick Freyne
'Patrick Freyne is a comic genius' MARIAN KEYES
'A writer of rare humour, depth, and humanity' MARK O'CONNELL
'No one makes me laugh like Patrick Freyne' PAUL HOWARD
'A brilliant writer' BLINDBOY BOATCLUB
'Patrick Freyne has a distinct and enviable gift for story-telling' SINÉAD GLEESON
'One of the funniest writers in Ireland' IRISH EXAMINER
315 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 11, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
April 26, 2026
4.5/5
Patrick Freyne brings you the history of The Heathens, the 1000th best band of all time. It must be true because they even have their greatest hits album out. The fact that it was their only record is unimportant.
The Heathens, however, are no more. Their story ended one night in a field in Galway when their van overturned, killing their lead singer, Joss, and leaving the rest of the band - Snoopy, Maggie and Burton blaming themselves and each other.
So when Maggie turns up back in Dublin it seems like the right time to find out exactly what did happen on the night of their very last gig. As if that wasnt enough to unravel why has Burton taken to abusing computers and exactly who is The Captain and why is he so fascinated with The Heathens music?
Patrick Freyne has produced another totally off the wall novel. His characters and dialogue are brilliantly drawn. I could imagine each of them and everywhere they went.
Funny, clever and immensely readable. Experts is not the laugh-fest Mr Freyne gave us in Okay, We'll Do Your Stupid Idea but it is entertaining and there are some truly laugh-out-loud parts. But he mixes this with a thoughtful book about youth, grief, loss and belonging.
I loved it. It's such a gentle book that shows what an entertaining and empathetic writer Patrick Freyne is. I can't wait until he writes another and just hope I don't have to wait too long.
Thankyou to Netgalley and Penguin General UK for the digital review copy. Most appreciated.
Patrick Freyne brings you the history of The Heathens, the 1000th best band of all time. It must be true because they even have their greatest hits album out. The fact that it was their only record is unimportant.
The Heathens, however, are no more. Their story ended one night in a field in Galway when their van overturned, killing their lead singer, Joss, and leaving the rest of the band - Snoopy, Maggie and Burton blaming themselves and each other.
So when Maggie turns up back in Dublin it seems like the right time to find out exactly what did happen on the night of their very last gig. As if that wasnt enough to unravel why has Burton taken to abusing computers and exactly who is The Captain and why is he so fascinated with The Heathens music?
Patrick Freyne has produced another totally off the wall novel. His characters and dialogue are brilliantly drawn. I could imagine each of them and everywhere they went.
Funny, clever and immensely readable. Experts is not the laugh-fest Mr Freyne gave us in Okay, We'll Do Your Stupid Idea but it is entertaining and there are some truly laugh-out-loud parts. But he mixes this with a thoughtful book about youth, grief, loss and belonging.
I loved it. It's such a gentle book that shows what an entertaining and empathetic writer Patrick Freyne is. I can't wait until he writes another and just hope I don't have to wait too long.
Thankyou to Netgalley and Penguin General UK for the digital review copy. Most appreciated.
November 26, 2025
Experts in a Dying Field (2026) is a sporadically enjoyable and over ambitious book about a fictional Irish band called The Heathens. The band considered themselves "the 1000th best band of all time." After a tragic tour van crash kills one of the members, the surviving members are brought back together twenty years later by weird happenings in Dublin, uncovering mysteries from their shared past. I thought I was going to love this book as I generally love books about bands and music but alas it was just okay.
Patrick Freyne includes a plethora of different characters to try and keep track of, and this is often aligned to all manner of different points of view and styles of writing. I can't fault its ambition but I was often adrift and unsure what was going on. I went with it and found it all very readable but suspect I missed aspects of the story. Or maybe not? None of it felt very consequential.
3/5
The Heathens thought of themselves as 'the 1000th best band of all time'. Then their tour van crashed, and one of their members died.
Twenty years later, weird things are happening in Dublin, bringing the surviving members of the band together in ways none of them could have anticipated and lifting the lid on mysteries from their shared past.
Experts in a Dying Field is a gloriously sharp, witty and surprising novel about friendship, secrets, the strange workings of grief and guilt, and the joyful alchemy of music, from a writer with a unique ability to access humour and deep emotion.
Praise for Patrick Freyne...
'Patrick Freyne is a comic genius' MARIAN KEYES
'A writer of rare humour, depth, and humanity' MARK O'CONNELL
'No one makes me laugh like Patrick Freyne' PAUL HOWARD
'A brilliant writer' BLINDBOY BOATCLUB
'Patrick Freyne has a distinct and enviable gift for story-telling' SINÉAD GLEESON
'One of the funniest writers in Ireland' IRISH EXAMINER
Patrick Freyne includes a plethora of different characters to try and keep track of, and this is often aligned to all manner of different points of view and styles of writing. I can't fault its ambition but I was often adrift and unsure what was going on. I went with it and found it all very readable but suspect I missed aspects of the story. Or maybe not? None of it felt very consequential.
3/5
The Heathens thought of themselves as 'the 1000th best band of all time'. Then their tour van crashed, and one of their members died.
Twenty years later, weird things are happening in Dublin, bringing the surviving members of the band together in ways none of them could have anticipated and lifting the lid on mysteries from their shared past.
Experts in a Dying Field is a gloriously sharp, witty and surprising novel about friendship, secrets, the strange workings of grief and guilt, and the joyful alchemy of music, from a writer with a unique ability to access humour and deep emotion.
Praise for Patrick Freyne...
'Patrick Freyne is a comic genius' MARIAN KEYES
'A writer of rare humour, depth, and humanity' MARK O'CONNELL
'No one makes me laugh like Patrick Freyne' PAUL HOWARD
'A brilliant writer' BLINDBOY BOATCLUB
'Patrick Freyne has a distinct and enviable gift for story-telling' SINÉAD GLEESON
'One of the funniest writers in Ireland' IRISH EXAMINER
June 13, 2026
gets the dubious title of the first book ive read to have namedropped chatgpt. this was fine! i see why it’s marketed for paul murray fans (which is why i read it), though paul murray fans may be disappointed—it’s just not clever enough, though it’s doing a lot. there’s something perhaps unavoidably cringe about band fiction, a sincerity you can’t get away from which is sort of endearing in its own way. tore through it, reading about 150 pages of it each day, which counts for something. i love punk and i love a lot of the bands freyne name drops, yet i dont think we have a similar taste in music: bizarre to me the choice to set the band in the early aughts (awful decade for punks thirty-year-old corpse) rather than the seventies—especially when it forces the end of the novel to take place in like…the 2050s, something freye seemingly hopes we just won’t notice. plus, edie. precocious little girl syndrome—one of my biggest literary pet peeves—strikes again. why, why, why do we keep doing this. if it was ever funny, IF, that was long before you exhumed the horse. come on editor. a few other things they should’ve caught where the welsh character doesn’t know/understand ‘irish’ phrases which are absolutely ubiquitous in the uk (calling someone the ‘spit of’ someone else is also a phrase used here). but fine! makes me want to read more slightly cringe band fiction. somewhere out there a Middle Aged man might love this book. really enjoyed jimmy as character, would’ve liked more from him.
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June 22, 2026#Gifted
Experts in a Dying Field is the first work of fiction from journalist and bestselling author of Ok, Let’s Do Your Stupid Idea.
You may also remember Patrick Freyne from such Irish Times articles as that one comparing the British monarchy to clowns, that seems to be seared on all our brains (in a good way).
I really enjoyed this book; it’s sharp and witty but also heartbreaking and nostalgic.
The Heathens, a Dublin-based band made up of various misfits, jokingly refer to themselves as the 1000th best band in the world. Their debut album is a bit experimental but they have potential. That is until their van crashes one night after a gig, with life changing consequences for them all.
Fast forward twenty years later and the remaining members of The Heathens are thrown back into each other’s orbits. They all think they know what happened that fateful night but soon long-held secrets are revealed that will change everything, once again.
I always really admire an author that can make me feel deep nostalgia for a time and place I never experienced. The last few pages of this book left me suspended for a while; I couldn’t figure out whether I wanted to cry, smile, or have a lie down. Maybe a combination of all three.
I loved the characters, who all feel well-rounded and real.
There’s plenty of empathy in this story about loss, grief and guilt. Finding the joy in life even through tragedy, and rekindling friendships are themes I love in a book so I was in my element here.
This is also a genuinely Irish story- no stereotypes to be found, but if you live in Dublin you’ll recognise so much of the geography, colloquialisms, and humour. It’s comforting and funny in equal measures.
If you love a well-told tale with multiple points-of-view, and a good blend of tragedy and humour, then I think you’ll love Experts in a Dying Field. Recommend!
With many thanks @penguinbooksireland for my early copy. All opinions are my own, as always. Experts in a Dying Field is available to buy now.
Experts in a Dying Field is the first work of fiction from journalist and bestselling author of Ok, Let’s Do Your Stupid Idea.
You may also remember Patrick Freyne from such Irish Times articles as that one comparing the British monarchy to clowns, that seems to be seared on all our brains (in a good way).
I really enjoyed this book; it’s sharp and witty but also heartbreaking and nostalgic.
The Heathens, a Dublin-based band made up of various misfits, jokingly refer to themselves as the 1000th best band in the world. Their debut album is a bit experimental but they have potential. That is until their van crashes one night after a gig, with life changing consequences for them all.
Fast forward twenty years later and the remaining members of The Heathens are thrown back into each other’s orbits. They all think they know what happened that fateful night but soon long-held secrets are revealed that will change everything, once again.
I always really admire an author that can make me feel deep nostalgia for a time and place I never experienced. The last few pages of this book left me suspended for a while; I couldn’t figure out whether I wanted to cry, smile, or have a lie down. Maybe a combination of all three.
I loved the characters, who all feel well-rounded and real.
There’s plenty of empathy in this story about loss, grief and guilt. Finding the joy in life even through tragedy, and rekindling friendships are themes I love in a book so I was in my element here.
This is also a genuinely Irish story- no stereotypes to be found, but if you live in Dublin you’ll recognise so much of the geography, colloquialisms, and humour. It’s comforting and funny in equal measures.
If you love a well-told tale with multiple points-of-view, and a good blend of tragedy and humour, then I think you’ll love Experts in a Dying Field. Recommend!
With many thanks @penguinbooksireland for my early copy. All opinions are my own, as always. Experts in a Dying Field is available to buy now.
June 18, 2026
enjoyed this a lot more than i was expecting to!! so funny, so Dublin, made me homesick a little
February 22, 2026
Got the proof from doing my thing and working in a bookshop!
To start off with the good:
Structure:
The author had alot of fun with experimenting with how the story is told, whether through short chapters describing a music review from a pretentious critic, or one where it turns into a play script. Very creative and enjoyable to read.
Prose:
Very engaging and easy to read, with alot of reflective comments on why music is so important. Quite funny at times too.
The cons are very short but sure:
Characters:
Don’t get me wrong, all the characters are interesting and compelling but I wanted MORE about them. This comes down to the length of the book and the structure taking more precedence. You can feel the depth of the characters, I just wanted more. Abigail in my opinion, is the least fleshed out really.
Overall a very solid novel debut and quite touching, I just wanted abit more from it as well.
To start off with the good:
Structure:
The author had alot of fun with experimenting with how the story is told, whether through short chapters describing a music review from a pretentious critic, or one where it turns into a play script. Very creative and enjoyable to read.
Prose:
Very engaging and easy to read, with alot of reflective comments on why music is so important. Quite funny at times too.
The cons are very short but sure:
Characters:
Don’t get me wrong, all the characters are interesting and compelling but I wanted MORE about them. This comes down to the length of the book and the structure taking more precedence. You can feel the depth of the characters, I just wanted more. Abigail in my opinion, is the least fleshed out really.
Overall a very solid novel debut and quite touching, I just wanted abit more from it as well.
June 18, 2026
A lot of characters which sometimes got a little confusing but overall this was full of heart, feeling and made me laugh.
January 15, 2026
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!
‘Experts in a Dying Field’ is a found media collection of bits and pieces, as well as narrative, that builds into the story of an underground in Ireland that never quite made it to the big time. It was a really well presented book and I enjoyed the context all the pieces put into the story- it felt very much like drawing all the fragments together to form a full picture.
I think the disconnect for me a bit was in how many characters there were and what we learn about them. I don’t feel I got to know them as people, which was really disappointing, as I feel it would have added a lot to the story for me. I just wanted to get to know them outside of the band context, and I didn’t feel as much of that heart was there.
I do think that the central mystery was enough to keep me engaged though, which I appreciated- and there were satellite conundrums that were good as well. I just wanted a little bit more punch in how we saw these people as a whole.
Also the cover for this one? Gorgeous. Such a beautiful design.
‘Experts in a Dying Field’ is a found media collection of bits and pieces, as well as narrative, that builds into the story of an underground in Ireland that never quite made it to the big time. It was a really well presented book and I enjoyed the context all the pieces put into the story- it felt very much like drawing all the fragments together to form a full picture.
I think the disconnect for me a bit was in how many characters there were and what we learn about them. I don’t feel I got to know them as people, which was really disappointing, as I feel it would have added a lot to the story for me. I just wanted to get to know them outside of the band context, and I didn’t feel as much of that heart was there.
I do think that the central mystery was enough to keep me engaged though, which I appreciated- and there were satellite conundrums that were good as well. I just wanted a little bit more punch in how we saw these people as a whole.
Also the cover for this one? Gorgeous. Such a beautiful design.
June 12, 2026
I always like to read the one and two-star reviews of books because I think they can tell you more than the five-star ones (she said, giving this a five-star rating). And I think the ones for this book are pretty accurate. Yes, it is more like a collection of short stories than a single coherent novel. Yes, it is pretty ambitious and there are a lot of characters, and it does sprawl, and it doesn't all resolve.
But I liked those things about it, though.
It's also as funny as you'd expect a Patrick Freyne novel to be, without in any way being a comic novel. All in all, most enjoyable, well done everyone.
But I liked those things about it, though.
It's also as funny as you'd expect a Patrick Freyne novel to be, without in any way being a comic novel. All in all, most enjoyable, well done everyone.
June 21, 2026
3.5
This is a real grower of a story... for the first 50% or so I was struggling to connect and get into a flow with it....But I was enjoying the character interactions even though I was, admittedly, fiercely confused as to how the individual elements were connected for a bit too long in the journey. Even now, writing this, I'm unconvinced it fully worked in terms of plot delivery.
That being said, by the end I found I was smitten with the story, the characters and I enjoyed the novelty of the more "left of field" concepts.
There are moments of truly stunning prose and lots of great humour contained within. Even with my minor grumblings, I would still recommend to a friend.
This is a real grower of a story... for the first 50% or so I was struggling to connect and get into a flow with it....But I was enjoying the character interactions even though I was, admittedly, fiercely confused as to how the individual elements were connected for a bit too long in the journey. Even now, writing this, I'm unconvinced it fully worked in terms of plot delivery.
That being said, by the end I found I was smitten with the story, the characters and I enjoyed the novelty of the more "left of field" concepts.
There are moments of truly stunning prose and lots of great humour contained within. Even with my minor grumblings, I would still recommend to a friend.
June 28, 2026
Patrick Freyne has written a terrifically entertaining music novel full of humour and empathy. The members of the Heathens and their stalled careers felt as nostalgic and authentic as any rock biography and it was enjoyable seeing them interact with each other, meeting again after a 20 year break with all the grief, guilt and baggage they carried.
Each chapter had a different point of view, which became a little confusing as there are many characters and some side plots, but all in all I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would be keen to read other novels by Patric Freyne.
My thanks to Penguin and NetGalley for an advance review copy.
Each chapter had a different point of view, which became a little confusing as there are many characters and some side plots, but all in all I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would be keen to read other novels by Patric Freyne.
My thanks to Penguin and NetGalley for an advance review copy.
December 26, 2025
For the majority of this book, I very much enjoyed it.
I felt the warmth and friendship between these characters.
Their pain, and the struggle to put lives back together.
It made me feel all nostalgic for old friends (I hadn't been in a band with)
It had a cast of wonderful characters, from the main band, to Becca and Edie. Each perfect for what was needed of them.
But some scenes just felt a bit off to me, I always think I'm not quite understanding the context. I'm a simple person 😃
It didn't spoil my enjoyment of the book, just left me momentarily puzzled.
I felt the warmth and friendship between these characters.
Their pain, and the struggle to put lives back together.
It made me feel all nostalgic for old friends (I hadn't been in a band with)
It had a cast of wonderful characters, from the main band, to Becca and Edie. Each perfect for what was needed of them.
But some scenes just felt a bit off to me, I always think I'm not quite understanding the context. I'm a simple person 😃
It didn't spoil my enjoyment of the book, just left me momentarily puzzled.
May 28, 2026
This felt more like interconnected short stories than a novel. I usually read books pretty fast, but I was reading this one over a long time, as it did not fully draw me in - possibly because there were many characters and at times I kept forgetting who was who. The novel felt nostalgic, and I really wanted to like it as I have a soft spot for books about music, bands, etc. but it just missed the mark for me. I can see how this might appeal to older audiences (I think I might be too young for it) 🫣
Many thanks to the publisher for the eARC via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
Many thanks to the publisher for the eARC via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
June 26, 2026
A rambling series of vignettes in search of a narrative and plot.
Freyne is an Irish Times journalist, and this book is clearly inspired by Bill Hicks & the gonzo journalism of Hunter S Thompson. A central casting pool of predictable characters wander in & out of this book, and there is little to recommend here.
As I doubt I will ever grace the pages of the Times, I won't don the green and gush over it unlike the authors who've endorsed it.
An undemanding read (or a pool side read) all I can say is don't give up the day job.
Freyne is an Irish Times journalist, and this book is clearly inspired by Bill Hicks & the gonzo journalism of Hunter S Thompson. A central casting pool of predictable characters wander in & out of this book, and there is little to recommend here.
As I doubt I will ever grace the pages of the Times, I won't don the green and gush over it unlike the authors who've endorsed it.
An undemanding read (or a pool side read) all I can say is don't give up the day job.
January 30, 2026
This is less a coherent novel, and more a collection of vaguely interconnected short stories.
DNF
DNF
June 13, 2026
Read this in three days. Freyne at his best.
June 30, 2026
Would read again, lots of side characters that lowkey I didn’t pay enough attention to. V funny and weird. Great chapter titles and narration
July 5, 2026
Imperfect but tender. A quick, sweeping view of humanity that could've been double the length and not overstayed its welcome
June 30, 2026
Thank you NetGalley for sending me this e-arc!
Unfortunately, this one wasn't for me. I was initially attracted to the synopsis as it's a about a band and their journey through battling grief after a tragic accident, and while this is factually correct, it was written in a way that didn't connect with me.
The beginning started off really strong with introducing the characters and giving snippets into the band's past. We got a glimpse into the tragic accident too which made you invested. I was quite invested up until the 30% mark, and then I was just a little bit bored.
The chapters were in different formats which could be fun and breaks the reading up a little bit, but pretty much half the chapters, we were introduced to new characters that I honestly struggled to connect to. Sometimes I couldn't get my head around who they were related to or where they fit into the story, and that's because there are soooo many characters in this book.
I personally don't like to DNF, but I was seriously contemplating doing exactly that at the 60% mark. While I did power on, I was skim reading it because I just wasn't enjoying it. I'm so sorry!
Unfortunately, this one wasn't for me. I was initially attracted to the synopsis as it's a about a band and their journey through battling grief after a tragic accident, and while this is factually correct, it was written in a way that didn't connect with me.
The beginning started off really strong with introducing the characters and giving snippets into the band's past. We got a glimpse into the tragic accident too which made you invested. I was quite invested up until the 30% mark, and then I was just a little bit bored.
The chapters were in different formats which could be fun and breaks the reading up a little bit, but pretty much half the chapters, we were introduced to new characters that I honestly struggled to connect to. Sometimes I couldn't get my head around who they were related to or where they fit into the story, and that's because there are soooo many characters in this book.
I personally don't like to DNF, but I was seriously contemplating doing exactly that at the 60% mark. While I did power on, I was skim reading it because I just wasn't enjoying it. I'm so sorry!
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews